Bel Air carjacking suspect faces additional robbery charges

BRYNA ZUMER, bzumer@theaegis.com

A Bel Air man charged with a carjacking and a robbery earlier this month continues to be held without bail at the Harford County Detention Center following his arrest in connection with an earlier robbery.

Christopher Montgomery, 36, of the 1800 block of Selvin Drive, was back in Harford County District Court on Thursday afternoon for a bail review hearing on a robbery and theft charge dating to Nov. 20.

District Court Judge Mimi Cooper ordered Montgomery held without bail Thursday, noting he is has two other pending robbery cases and a violation of probation charge.

Online court records show Montgomery was arrested at the detention center on Dec. 19 on a warrant for robbery and theft less than $1,000. Charging documents for that case were not available from District Court Thursday afternoon.

Earlier this month, Montgomery was ordered held without bail after he allegedly carjacked and injured a woman in his neighborhood and two days later allegedly robbed a man at a Wawa in Bel Air.

In the Dec. 7 carjacking, he was accused of approaching a woman parking her car in the 1300 block of Scottsdale Drive and grabbing her car keys, pushing her and running toward her car, despite her attempts to rebuff him, according to a statement of charges. He allegedly then drove away in her car while the woman was trying to get her keys from the ignition, injuring her and also hitting another car.

The victim was treated at Upper Chesapeake Medical Center for a leg laceration and scrapes from that incident. She later positively identified Montgomery from a photograph, according to the statement of charges.

Montgomery also allegedly robbed a man at the Wawa in the 700 block of Baltimore Pike on Dec. 10. He is accused of attacking the 22-year-old victim, who was pumping gas, and grabbing the victim's wallet before getting away, according to charging documents.

In those two earlier cases, Judge Susan Hazlett had ordered that Montgomery be held without bail in the carjacking, citing the injuries to the victim, and on $200,000 bail in the Wawa robbery.